ONE of the fundamental tenets of parliamentary democracy is the Rule of Law.

It was first articulated by the 19th century jurist professor A V Dicey in his Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution.

The basis of his ideas were that all citizens are equal before the law and can only be punished for a breach of the law as opposed to the whim or diktat of an official.

Of course this has often been a theoretical construct that bore little relation to reality.

For example the undercover police who infiltrated radical groups and then lied with impunity to the courts have not been prosecuted.

One of the pillars of the welfare state was the introduction of the Legal Aid system in 1949.

Equality of access to the law without the means of paying was meaningless.

No longer were the courts, with the exception of libel, the playthings of the rich.

If you were injured at work or suffered clinical negligence or false imprisonment the state would pay so you could bring a legal action to obtain redress.

Under New Labour and the Conservatives, the legal aid system has been whittled away to almost nothing.

Legal Aid has virtually disappeared in civil cases. In employment tribunals, the introduction of high fees, £1,200 for a hearing, has had a devastating effect.

I practised for more than 12 years and obtained hundreds of thousands of pounds for people who had suffered an injustice.

If today’s fees had been in place, most of those people, including whistleblowers, could not have afforded to pay to secure their rights.

  • Tony Greenstein, Brighton-based political activist